Calm offers chance to heal rift with Britain

ZIMBABWE'S ruling and opposition parties were exchanging conciliatory signals yesterday as British diplomats hoped to seize the rare moment of calm to restore relations with President Mugabe.

After months of mutual recriminations and insults between London and Harare, one diplomat said: "We are anxious to get away from this confrontational stuff, which doesn't help anybody." For the embattled British diplomatic staff in Harare, the indecisive outcome of the Zimbabwe elections may for the moment have produced the most desirable result.

The strong showing by the opposition Movement for Democratic Change is seen as a vindication of London's criticism of Mr Mugabe. Yet diplomats hope that, because his ruling Zanu-PF party won the contest, he can afford to be conciliatory. One diplomat said: "At least I don't have to write telegrams about the possibility of a military coup and I don't have to worry about shipping tens of thousands of whites out of the country."

After a campaign marred by intense violence and intimidation, Zanu-PF took 62 seats, compared with 57 for the MDC and one for the Zanu-Ndonga group. Zanu-PF is assured of firm control of parliament by virtue of Mr Mugabe's power to appoint 30 additional MPs.

The MDC said yesterday it would lodge appeals against the results in a test group of 10 constituencies which it claims it lost because of systematic political intimidation by the ruling party. If successful, by-elections would be held in the disputed seats. However, Morgan Tsvangirai, the party's leader, has accepted the overall result and said the next Zanu-PF government would be "legitimate".

In the recent war of words, Mr Mugabe vilified Britain as a country of arrogant colonialists led by "gay gangsters" in the Blair government. Peter Hain, the Foreign Office minister for Africa, responded by describing Mr Mugabe as a "tyrant" who had ruined his country. Robin Cook, the Foreign Secretary, seized the moment on Tuesday to change the tone. He offered Mr Mugabe a "fresh start" in relations if Zimbabwe returned to the rule of law and worked with the new opposition.

It was a tacit admission that Britain is likely to have to deal with Mr Mugabe at least until his presidential term ends in two years. A fatherly Mr Mugabe appeared on television to congratulate the election contestants. He said: "We are still able to ensure that victory and defeat are quick to reconcile, quick to connect and cohabit in the same national space for greater peace and togetherness."

But any detente may be short-lived after the outgoing justice minister, Emmerson Mnangagwa, said the government was determined to push ahead "with more vigour" plans to expropriate more than 800 mainly white-owned farms without paying compensation.

The diplomat said: "I think the way Mugabe handles the land issue is going to be very important. We would like to help Zimbabwe get out of its huge economic hole. No donor is going to give Zimbabwe any money in the face of what is generally regarded as an illegal act. Mugabe may have burned his bridges. He may feel he cannot go back."

Christopher Munnion in Johannesburg writes: President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa yesterday praised the conduct of Zimbabwe's elections which he said would encourage "the advancement of democracy" throughout Africa. He said the large turnout of voters was a welcome sign.